Alex and Leah stand together in silence for a few moments after Jeremy leaves. It’s cold near the dragon’s pen and she hugs herself for warmth.
Leah
Jeremy was just kidding, right?
Leah
Then why are we just standing here? Shouldn’t we be doing something to help?
Alex grabs onto Leah’s arm and she jumps a little, still startled by not being able to see what she can clearly feel is there.
Alex
Do you hear something?
Leah struggles to hear anything over the sound of adrenaline rushing to her ears.
There’s air moving through a vent—but no, it’s too irregular for that.
And just underneath it, the sound of—squealing?
Alex takes off at a run, Leah following only a second later.
Sure enough, when they turn the corridor, they see the dragon, attempting to set the pigs’ cage on fire.
The creature is dark grey and Leah figures that, when he was resting, someone might mistake the beast for a pile of rocks instead of a living, breathing entity.
But he’s definitely not resting now.
As he moves she can see the magma-red of its skin through the interlocking armor of its scales.
Leah
He’s not as big as I thought.
Alex
Glad you find that reassuring.
Leah
Oh, I’m still terrified.
Alex
Back up some, will ya?
Leah
Why? What are you going to do?
Leah
Alex, I thought your magic was still haywire for the next couple of hours!
Alex
It is, which is why you should consider backing up a little more…and perhaps, hiding over there.
Alex takes a deep breath.
Alex
Kids, don’t try this at home.
Alex
Mr. Dragon, over here!
The beast swings its head around, slowly, like the head of a construction crane. It sees nothing…but that is not a problem for a creature that is used to relying on his sense of smell.
Suddenly, a burst of glitter hits the dragon in the face.
Alex
That…was supposed to be fire.
The dragon roars, violently.
Leah peeks around the pillar she’s hiding behind. She can tell from the impressions in the wood chips on the ground that Alex is slowly backing up.
Alex
Hello, Your Majesty, sir. I see we might have gotten off on the wrong foot. You know, I could talk to someone about getting you some better accommodations here, maybe three cows for dinner instead of two. My friend, Jeremy—
The dragon blows stream from his nostrils.
Alex
Ah, I see you’re not a fan of Jeremy. Well, I can understand that. He gets on my nerves sometimes, too…
At this point, all Leah can see are the dragon’s powerful back-legs, his scales flexing along with the muscle.
Leah
I can’t believe I’m doing this.
Taking off her shoe as a really pathetic weapon, Leah runs into the center of the room.
Leah throws the shoe at the dragon, where it bounces off its back.
Leah
Come on, come on! Really tasty human, right over here!
Alex is forced to watch in terror as, with a roar of agreement, the dragon turns towards her, displaying the five horns lining the bridge of his nose.
Suddenly, the dragon charges.
And yet, Leah doesn’t run away from the dragon — but instead ducks through the gap between his legs.
Alex
Leah…Leah! He’s turning around. He’s coming back for you.
Leah
Come on! Catch me if you can!
In spite of her tough talk, the hairs on the back of Leah’s neck feel like a dozen tiny spiders crawling along her skin.
The room vibrates from the dragon’s footsteps.
Leah approaches the wall…
She forces herself to slow down, to let the dragon get even closer…
At the very last second, Leah pulls the door in front of her open and then jumps aside.
The dragon, carried forward by its own momentum, goes through the open doorway, taking several pieces of the door frame with him.
Leah closes the door behind him anyway, already realizing the obvious flaws in her plan.
And yet, no wrecking-ball-like force comes crashing through from the other direction.
She feels Alex join her and still no fire burns through the door into their backs. The roaring has completely ceased.
A few seconds later, Jeremy comes running up to them, chest heaving.
He takes one look at the destruction all around them and his face becomes whiter and more fearful.
Jeremy
Please tell me that you didn’t just send the dragon through the world portal?
Leah
What’s a world portal?
Jeremy
Shit, shit, shit, shit!
Alex
Jeremy says it’s a magical door that allows you to go anyplace in the world, which means…
Jeremy
The dragon could be, literally, anywhere!
Leah
This is all my fault. I don’t know enough about the way magic works to just…react like that. I’m sorry.
Jeremy
Don’t be. That impulse problem of yours saved my best friend’s life.
Alex
Yeah…I suppose I should have said ‘thanks’ for that.
Leah
You guys are complimenting me for releasing a giant winged lizard on an unsuspecting populace?
Jeremy
Enjoy it. It will never happen again. Hopefully.
Leah
So I guess the question becomes, how are we gonna fix this?
Jeremy
Holy shit! I think I’ve got an idea.
Leah
Don’t bother translating that one. I already know that means we’re not going to like it.
Jeremy
Okay, according to the dragon’s tracker, he should be somewhere near here.
The three of them glance around the tiny cornfield, backed by woods.
It was fairly remote, which was good. And fairly open, which was not.
Alex was invisible, but Jeremy would have to hide a good distance away so as to not be seen. As for Leah…
Leah
I’m not really the ‘damsel in distress’ type, you know.
Alex
You’re not the damsel in distress. You’re bait.
Leah
And that’s supposed to make me feel better?
Alex
Yeah. It takes the most bravery to be bait.
Alex
Now, here’s your potion.
Alex
Probably best if you pinch your nose while you’re drinking it.
With a shudder, Leah finishes off the last of the bottle.
Instantly, her body hunches over, tan skin turning pink, her clothes sprouting feathers.
Within seconds, she’s a perfect clone of the cute flying pig that she had been holding earlier.
She gives an experimental flap of her wings and manages to get into the air about a foot before falling back down again.
Leah
OK, I’ll admit that’s pretty cool.
Alex
You’ll get better at it with practice.
Leah
Wait! You can hear me?!
Alex
Yup! When you use a transformation potion, you also temporarily develop the ability to project your thoughts.
Jeremy
Time to get in positions everyone!
Jeremy
Leah, you look absolutely ravishing.
